Climate change fears for hospital

Two of the Sunshine Coast’s biggest projects – the Kawana Hospital and the $1 billion CAMCOS rail link – could be excluded from the state government’s new climate change assessments.

From July 1, all relevant cabinet submissions will be accompanied by a climate change impact statement with details of the proposals’ greenhouse gas emissions, mitigation measures and vulnerability to the effects of global warming.

However, that assessment may not apply to projects which have already been approved.

The minister for sustainability and climate change, Andrew McNamara, sidestepped a question from Kawana MP Steve Dickson in parliament about whether these projects would be assessed.

“From the middle of this year every cabinet submission will include the climate cost of everything that we do,” the minister said. “This is visionary stuff.

“It will, of course, address future proposals.”

Mr Dickson said he remained concerned that the proposed location for the new hospital would be vulnerable to severe weather events, rising sea levels and storm surges.